Spouse
by jessara40k
Summary: Part of my Cetra Restoration AU. Takes place after 'Consort' and covers Cloud's search for a spouse, to take a bit of pressure off Aeris.
1. Chapter 1

Aeris stopped Cloud as he made his way to the small council room, one hand on his arm and an anxious look in her eyes.

"Cloud, you don't have to do this. The Triumvirate can't force you to take a spouse against your will."

Cloud laughed softly as he took hold of Aeris' wrists, turning her hands palm up, and lifting them to kiss her on the pulse points in her wrists.

"I'd have to take a spouse at some point. Just as you will. This way you'll get a bit more time with just Zack, and I only agreed to consider the three candidates they put forward."

"Oh, so you aren't going to accept any of them, you just agreed to consider the candidates to distract them from me. Thank you." Aeris pulled her hands back, a relieved look on her face.

"No, I looked through the files of the candidates they presented and considered each one seriously." Cloud shrugged one shoulder. "Look, unless I do the political marriage thing, and take a spouse from one of the factions who have issues with our rule, I've got three real choices.

"I could buck tradition in choosing my spouse and pick her from the low nobility or noble-born high nobility, which will make our people feel at least a little bit insecure. It's been done before, but I really don't think that's a good idea since our people have spent so long in stasis and at least some are still uncomfortable with how the world have changed.

"I could do the 'romantic' thing and take one of my guards as my spouse, except that's a much less established tradition, and I can't lie and claim to love one of them, not when I already have a consort and I've fought so much to keep him and have him accepted. But I can get away with saying I'll look among my guards for a spouse if the candidate I select from the options the Triumvirate suggest offers grave enough offence far enough into our courtship."

"You mean you're _hoping_ whichever poor woman you select from the three they've suggested insults you like that?" Aeris sounded disappointed in him, and he _hated_ doing that to her, even as he was glad to distract her and give her a bit of sympathy for his chosen candidate. "What will it do to her reputation?"

"Hey, I'm not setting her up to fail. I fully plan to see if she can handle treating Sephiroth right, but she's only eighteen, and she's already got a small harem, four concubines." It was more likely to be a bad sign than a good one, but Cloud _hoped_ it would mean she'd be happy to keep out of his personal household. "She's the best of the three candidates, it's not like we've got a lot of common-born high nobility to choose from."

"No, no it isn't." Aeris shook her head sadly, she probably knew that he'd chosen Rowan just from the description he'd given, considering how few common-born high nobility there were, and how most of those from the warrior caste were in their thirties or older. "I've kept you long enough, I'm sorry, go on and deal with the Triumvirate. I'll send Zack to spar with you afterwards if you want?"

"No!" Cloud made a conscious effort to temper his instinctive revulsion at the idea of sparring with a consort, any consort - after all he'd sparred with Zack before Aeris took him as her consort. "Thank you, but no. I'm going to want to spend time with Sephiroth after this."

"To reassure him, right." Aeris smiled, a hint of approval in her eyes, and turned away slowly. "I'll see you at dinner then."

"Yes...we'll have to eat with the Triumvirate, unfortunately. But I'll still be able to let you know how it goes then." Cloud set his shoulders and walked into the small council room, taking his seat across from the Triumvirate, laying the folders on their candidates on the desk in front of him and waiting for one of them to speak.

"Have you made a decision about which of our candidates would be acceptable as a spouse, my warrior liege?" He wasn't too surprised that Glynnis was the one to speak first, for all that she was healer caste she had the most courage of the three of them, at least when dealing with him, and so she was their default leader in this area, possibly others.

"Yes, I'll go through them from least suitable to most." Cloud picked up the first of the folders he'd brought in with him. "Ivan, what precisely were you thinking when you suggested Marian to me?"

"That she's the leader of one of the factions most offended by your choice of consorts, my warrior liege, and taking her as a spouse would be seen as a conciliatory move." Ivan looked confused by Cloud's question, and oblivious to the glares Glynnis and Joanne were directing at him. Cloud wasn't too happy with his suggestion either, but he didn't let it affect his expression - his words should make his displeasure at Ivan's attempt to slip a political espousal through the back door clear enough.

"First she is noble-born, not common-born. Taking her as a spouse would placate a small faction of bigots, at the cost of making the majority of the Cetra feel uncertain of me. Not something a responsible ruler would desire. Or are you one of those bigots?" Cloud shook his head before Ivan could reply and dropped her folder in the bin. "Don't bother to answer, I won't be able to trust your word on this. And your personal feelings do not matter so long as you do not allow them to colour how you perform your duty." As he had in this case, but this was the first time he'd let his prejudices against Sephiroth show. "I will not put my consort into a situation where he is subject to abuse, which is what your suggestion would lead to. I advise you to re-examine your prejudices and beliefs very seriously."

"I...yes my warrior liege." Ivan looked shaken, as well he should. Cloud's words were putting him on notice that he was coming close to losing his place as a Triumvir, and he'd finally noticed that Joanne and Glynnis weren't going to try and save his political career.

"Glynnis, I appreciate that you were looking for someone sympathetic to my choice of consorts, but...Yvanne is nearly old enough to be my mother." Cloud hated having to reject Yvanne, probably for the same reason Glynnis has put her forward; _her_ consort was an enhanced human, one of the ones who'd been enhanced as an adult. "She's probably still fertile, and I know all the children she got by her first consort were warrior caste, but we don't know how much longer she'll be fertile." He put her file to one side, reluctantly.

"I know." Glynnis clearly understood his reasoning. "You need someone closer to your own age. Getting children from Yvanne would be difficult, and possibly dangerous for her. Besides, she's already done _her_ duty that way."

"And Rowan hasn't. I'd refuse if that was her biggest qualification, but killing a Midgar Zolom, even an immature serpent, before her power activation ritual tells me she's an incredibly skilled fighter."

"So you're going to take her as your spouse, my warrior liege?"

"You're getting a bit ahead of yourself aren't you Joanne? I'm not going to basically order someone to be my spouse, certainly not when I've never even _met_ her." Cloud picked up the fourth folder, opening it and taking out the report on top, glancing over it. "We're due to do a cull of the Midgar Zolom fairly soon. I think that it would be appropriate if Rowan was paired with me for that. Arrange it."

"Yes my warrior liege." Joanne stood and came to collect the file, putting it on her own smaller desk. "With your approval I'll organise the cull so that you can make the best possible start to your courtship with Rowan."

"Granted." Cloud stood and picked up Rowan's folder. "I believe that completes my business with you. Of course you are all invited to eat with us this evening." And with that he walked out.


	2. Chapter 2

"Mistress, are you certain this is appropriate?" Scarlet sounded so anxious that Rowan wanted to laugh...and honestly it wasn't _quite_ within the bounds of propriety to bring her first concubine with her to a meal intended to start a courtship towards espousal, but neither was Cloud's insistence on bringing his consort. Still, she stifled her amusement to reassure the blonde.

"I issued the invitation, so it's my right to bring you if I choose to. Especially since he insisted on bringing his consort along." Rowan smiled at Scarlet as she climbed down to the street and held out a hand to help her down out of the carriage in front of the restaurant she'd chosen. As the lower ranked prospective spouse she was supposed to make the first move in the courtship, even though _Cloud_ had been the one to express interest first, at the end of the cull they'd been paired together on.

"But he outranks you, and we're in public; you aren't supposed to display a concubine like this, _consorts_ are the ones you show off." But Scarlet didn't protest again and she kept her voice low and her eyes cast down submissively as she settled her full skirts around her legs.

"In a courtship it's actually _less_ proper to show off a consort than a concubine." Rowan turned her attention to the human maitre d', who left the line of commoners and humans to wait while he hurried over to attend to her, something she still found uncomfortable two years after learning she was high nobility, even though she wouldn't have resented it as a commoner herself. "Rowan Ashe, I booked a table for four."

"Yes, my lady, and I believe you requested a table on the upper level, towards the edge of the balcony?"

"I did." The first step had to be a public meal, and considering her status, the balcony on a high class restaurant was the very best option. The man glanced over to one side then, and she followed his gaze to see an uncaste Cetra in a simple blue shift dress short enough to show most of her legs waiting near the stairs.

"If it pleases you, my lady, Dianne can take you to your table, as your dedicated server?" He sounded just a little anxious and Rowan nodded her agreement with a smile.

"Yes, that will do nicely." The uncaste was probably four or five years older than her, but her blonde hair fell past her shoulders and her legs were nicely muscled - and Rowan liked good legs, even if Scarlet was hiding hers today. "Lead on, Dianne." She slid one arm around Scarlet's slim waist, and gestured for the uncaste to go ahead of them on the stairs with her sword arm, enjoying the chance to get a better view of those lovely legs and the tight ass that went with them. She liked the way Scarlet leaned against her, letting her support her the way warrior caste were supposed to support their lesser lovers and she made a point of pulling Scarlet's chair out for her, despite Dianne's faintly scandalised look.

"Do you wish to order drinks while you wait my lady?" She checked the time as she sat opposite Scarlet before making her decision.

"Yes, apple juice for both of us. I take it you can supply that?" Like most warrior caste Rowan had a preference for juices over wine, and apple, pear and grape juice were particularly popular at the moment - although a restaurant with the reputation of Loredan's should have just about every sort of juice there was available.

"Of course my lady. If you wish it I will bring the juice and wine menus with your drinks?" Dianne's eyes were modestly cast down, and for a moment Rowan let herself be disappointed by the equally modest neckline of her dress.

"Please, and menus for my guests as well."

"Yes my lady." Scarlet didn't say anything until the woman was out of earshot, but from her expression she was getting nervous again.

"Mistress, are we early, or are they late?" Rowan reached across the table to take hold of Scarlet's wrist in unspoken reassurance. She wasn't entirely sure why Scarlet was so unhappy about this; she'd taken her harem out to eat in public in the past, and even taken just Scarlet out to a restaurant before she bought her other concubines.

"We're about ten minutes early, but Cloud might arrive early himself." Warrior caste were almost always early if they had a choice in the matter and she didn't expect the Planet's Weapon to be any different. "Just calm down, shut your eyes and take a deep breath, slowly." Scarlet obeyed and Rowan watched the way her breasts moved appreciatively; the deep sweetheart neckline that exposed the upper curve of Scarlet's breasts almost made up for her long skirts, and Rowan wouldn't be able to see her legs while they were sitting down anyway.

"Your drinks, my lady, madam." Dianne sounded a little as if she resented having to be polite to Scarlet, but she used the courteous title as she put Scarlet's juice down in front of her anyway, and that would have to do. Besides, if she was equally rude to Cloud's consort Rowan would have the pleasure of watching _him_ tear a strip off her, and he might even do something if she was only resentful towards Scarlet in his presence. And if Dianne's manners didn't improve she certainly wasn't getting a tip, Rowan reflected as the woman laid out two menus at each place, one for drinks and one for food.

"Thank you." Rowan kept her voice polite, but cold as she lifted her menu, nodding to the woman. "Why don't you go and wait downstairs for my guests?"

"As you wish my lady." She knelt for a brief moment before she turned to leave and Rowan turned her attention back to Scarlet. She should get Scarlet something after this, it had been a while since she'd given her a proper gift rather than just giving her money to buy whatever the harem needed. When she heard three people come onto the balcony it was easy to identify them as Dianne, guiding Cloud and his consort since she'd paid extra to ensure they had the balcony to themselves. She stood, and Scarlet followed suit, moving to join her as she walked forward to meet them.

"Cloud." She held both hands out to him, palm up and open to show that she held no weapons and he gripped her forearms, resting his forearms on her hands and allowing her to return the grip as if they were equals, rather than gripping her forearms from beneath as he was entitled to if he wished.

"Rowan. And this is my consort, Sephiroth." He pulled Sephiroth forward and when the man held his hands out to Rowan the way she'd held hers out to Cloud she had a few moments to decide how to greet him; human, of no caste or class, but highly favoured by the Planet's Weapon...she took his wrists in her hands and raised them to her lips, kissing each wrist in turn.

"Sephiroth." Apologise now, or later? She'd intended to meet Cloud's insult of demanding she allow his consort to accompany him with the insult of bringing her first concubine to accompany her, but now she realised that it was more an insult to _Sephiroth_ than to Cloud, and she hadn't intended that. Later, the insult had to be clear before she apologised for it, and it would give her something to do while Cloud was greeting Scarlet. So, how to compliment him? His scent would be too intimate, and he might be sensitive about his eyes. She didn't know enough about clothes or make-up to compliment him on those properly, all she'd be able to say was that his clothes looked good on him, so...hair it was then.

"You have beautiful hair - although I expect you hear that a lot. But I didn't quite appreciate how long you keep it when I saw you before." Perhaps she should share something personal about herself, since this was the first step towards joining her household to Cloud's? "When I was younger I envied humans and healer caste because they were allowed to grow their hair past the nape of their necks."

"From your reputation I would have thought you could boast by allowing your hair to grow to a less practical length now." Boast? Ah, that she could afford to leave such an obvious weakness in place...Rowan would have to think about that. "Still, your hair is a striking colour, and it is arranged well." That part sounded oddly rehearsed, but it gave her a good excuse to introduce Scarlet.

"Thank you." She released his hands as she spoke, glancing over at Scarlet. "It's Scarlet's work, she is my first concubine." She held out a hand to Scarlet and pushed her over to meet Cloud, watching as he kissed the inside of Scarlet's wrists and said something about her dress. "Sephiroth, my apologies for seeming to equate your place with Cloud to that of my first concubine, but I have found no one to love as he does you, and any companions for this meeting between us should be as close to equivalents as possible."

"Thank you for the explanation my lady." Sephiroth's smile seemed just a little relieved and he glanced at Scarlet then back at her, as if he was asking permission to turn his attention to Scarlet's attempt to greet him. Rowan smiled and moved to stand by Cloud, just waiting for him to say whatever it was that had him puzzled.

"You apologised to Sephiroth, not to me."

"My intent was to offer the same insult to you as you did to me, bringing a companion who knows me and has shared my bed when we are considering one another as spouses. Insulting Sephiroth was not part of my plan, so an apology was needed." Cloud didn't say anything further, allowing Rowan to hear what Sephiroth was saying to her concubine.

"I might be technically skilled, but I know I'll never have an artist's touch with this and I know enough to recognise it when I see it." Scarlet actually blushed at that, almost whispering her thanks, and Rowan decided to take Scarlet searching for a new scent the next day as she moved forward to guide Sephiroth to sit on her left hand, pulling his chair out for him while Cloud did the same for Scarlet.

"Bringing me here was a test you realise my lady?"

"I hadn't actually thought about that." Rowan admitted that in surprised, and with more than a little chagrin; she _should_ have considered it after the very public way Cloud had prosecuted that Isis who'd tutored the Planet's Heart for abuse of his consort. Sephiroth didn't say anything else to her, instead drawing Scarlet into a discussion of their duties and allowing Rowan to talk to Cloud without interruption.


	3. Chapter 3

Cloud looked almost unhappy when he returned to his rooms but Sephiroth smiled at him anyway.

"Should I ask what's wrong Cloud? You were signing the espousal contract with Rowan today weren't you?" Cloud let Sephiroth pull him to the couch and Sephiroth beckoned Tseng over with a jerk of his chin as he sat beside his beloved.

"Yes, I...it's just, as I was signing those papers with her it really hit me." He looked at Sephiroth, worry clear in his eyes. "I'm committed now, she agreed to a clause that makes interfering with each other's households, including inflicting any form of abuse on consort or concubines, grounds for divorce and that was the last stumbling point. Now the only way I can back out is if she does something I could declare feud over."

"Just _could_ declare feud over?" For some offences declaring feud was an option, and for others it was a requirement; Sephiroth had been grateful to realise giving a concubine without gaining the approval of a pre-existing consort was in the former category after he'd learned just how serious that offence was considered.

"The top two categories of offence, anything else I'm expected to treat as a family thing." Cloud sounded resigned...he should be happy to have this all settled; Sephiroth had given his approval four months ago at the beginning of the courtship after she'd passed their test by apologising to _him_ rather than to Cloud. "Did I do the right thing when I signed those papers? Is she the right choice for me, for us all?"

"Yes my lord, she is." Tseng hadn't used _that_ form of address for Cloud for a long time, and they both looked at him as he knelt in front of Cloud in faint shock. "She treats her harem well, she doesn't just decorate them with those gold collars and cuffs and all that other jewellery to look generous, I asked when I was allowed to meet with them. And only one of the five is male, so she won't bother you outside of what it takes to produce the heirs you both need."

"But they're all blondes. And they've mostly got blue eyes too." Cloud sounded oddly ambivalent about that; wouldn't it be easier to produce the heirs he needed if Rowan desired him, as long as he could be aroused by her? Sephiroth had heard stories that a female Cetra's fertility was partly dependent on whether or not she desired the man she was with. "I guess at least _that_ means she won't bother either of you, or expect me to consider sharing you Tseng."

"But...no one shares a first concubine with a spouse, only the later ones." Tseng sounded confused by Cloud's words, but Sephiroth could tell that Cloud was as surprised by what Tseng was saying as he was.

"I didn't know that...she was talking about sharing her concubines with me, and she didn't say anything about excluding Scarlet."

"You've just exposed another gap in our education Tseng. But it might make it easier for you to refuse her offers to share her concubines with you Cloud. You can say you don't feel comfortable borrowing them when you have no one you can offer her." Sephiroth stroked Cloud's shoulders to make him feel better, and came to the conclusion that Cloud needed something a bit more physical than that. "Would you like to come to bed now Cloud?"

"I...yes, I need to stop thinking about this. Tseng too?"

"Of course, but let me decide what to do. You need to relax." He wouldn't have been able to suggest this before Cloud turned eighteen and it wouldn't even have occurred to him that Cloud might like to let Sephiroth take any degree of control in bed before that first time Sephiroth had suggested inviting Tseng to share their bed, his and Cloud's.

"Yes, I do." All the tension disappeared from Cloud's body as he replied to Sephiroth, a faint smile on his face. "But I want to taste you, whatever else we do."

"Yes, we can do that." Sephiroth stroked Cloud's face as they stood, holding his other hand out to help Tseng to his feet. But he also thought that Cloud needed to be fucked to make him relax, or he wouldn't have asked for Tseng. He bent to kiss Cloud before he started undressing him and Tseng joined in when Sephiroth nodded permission, between them they had Cloud naked by the time they got to the bed.

"Tseng, get the lubricant you use with him." He kissed Cloud as a distraction when Tseng pulled away to obey him, then helped his lover onto the bed. "Cloud, do you think you can prepare yourself while we undress each other, Tseng and I?"

"You'll make it look good?" The question was at least half an order and Sephiroth pulled away from Cloud with a smile.

"If we can, yes." Tseng was better at that than Sephiroth was, so he'd let the other man take the lead as they undressed if that would help them please Cloud.

"We're supposed to put on a show?" Tseng made a point of just looking at Sephiroth once he'd handed the lubricant over to Cloud, and Sephiroth wasn't sure why, but it didn't really matter, and he accepted Tseng's wordless instructions on how to make it look good as they undressed together. Then they turned towards Cloud, and Sephiroth was relieved to see that he had clearly finished preparing himself.

"Could you get on your hands and knees please Cloud?" Cloud didn't say anything, just rolled over and moved into the requested position, wiggling his ass invitingly.

"Tseng, let me get in position before you take him." Tseng nodded obediently and watched as Sephiroth slid underneath Cloud, resting a hand on his hip. "Give me a pillow to go under my head." Sephiroth lifted his head enough to take Cloud into his mouth, and Tseng placed a pillow there to give him the support he needed.

"Now then?" Sephiroth had to let Cloud's cock fall from his mouth to answer, but it would let him give Cloud his final instructions as well.

"Yes, now. Cloud, you should be able to taste me in this position." The response to his words was an almost tentative lick to the tip of his cock as Cloud lowered himself to his elbows.

"We should wait until Tseng's inside me before we have anything in our mouths."

"Yes, we should." The way Cloud moved above him when Tseng entered him let Sephiroth know just what a bad idea his original plan had been, and he was silently grateful for Cloud's forethought, although all he actually did was take Cloud into his mouth again, enjoying the taste and the reactions he could get from him. Then Cloud wrapped his mouth around Sephiroth's cock, a bit clumsy considering the circumstances, but that it was _Cloud_ was enough for Sephiroth in a lot of ways.

He managed to hold off his own climax until he could taste Cloud's seed, then he relaxed his throat and his self control, letting himself climax as he swallowed what Cloud gave him. From the slight tensing of Cloud's legs Tseng had slumped over on top of him a bit and Sephiroth began wriggling out from underneath the two of them, moving to pull Cloud into an embrace, letting Tseng press up against his back so they could just cuddle for a while.


	4. Chapter 4

Cloud rested a faintly possessive hand at the small of Sephiroth's back as they made their way to the great hall. He _hated_ formal banquets...he couldn't have Sephiroth or Tseng sitting at the table with him the way he could for smaller meals, formal or informal, for most of them, but this was an exception; an espousal celebration was the only formal banquet where it was acceptable for his consort to sit with him. It worried him that Rowan had chosen not to select a family member to share a table with himself and Aeris, even though technically she could have chosen two, since none of her family kept a consort, but she'd pointed out that her family were unlikely to feel comfortable in his presence. Instead he'd arranged for two tables specifically for Rowan's family, seating Elmyra and his own mother, who'd come back from Nibelheim just to see him espoused, there to honour them.

They were the last to arrive, but not by much, and Cloud held a chair for Sephiroth, and leaving the fifth chair unoccupied for the moment, smiling at the others as he greeted them. He was privately grateful that they didn't feel the need to stand to greet him, since he never felt sure whether to kiss Zack's wrists as a consort deserved, or grip his forearms from beneath in the respect a warrior deserved, even when of a lower rank and caste. He had to make the announcement before he sat down himself though, and start the banquet.

"I'm please to announce that Rowan Ashe has signed an espousal contract with me, and we intend to exchange vows in a week's time, on the thirteenth of December." Blunt and simple, but no one expected subtlety or fancy words from the Planet's Weapon and he took his seat, resting one hand on Tseng's head where he knelt by Cloud's feet. While they were waiting for their server to bring the first course to them Cloud took a roll and buttered it for Sephiroth, handing it over to his consort before starting to prepare his own roll, noting absently that Zack was performing the same service for Aeris. But it shamed him a bit to see Rowan hand the first roll she buttered down to her first concubine; the concubines weren't going to get much to eat at this banquet - normally even Tseng didn't attend banquets - and he handed his own roll down to Tseng before preparing another for himself, and then one for Rowan.

"Thank you Cloud." There was a hint of surprise in her voice and smile, as she looked at him, and then she turned to Zack. "And thank you as well...Zack." She'd passed four rolls down to her concubines, and Zack had prepared a fifth one to pass down to her last concubine.

"You're welcome." Cloud glanced at Zack as he realised they'd both spoken simultaneously, and Zack immediately lowered his eyes as he pulled back a bit to let their server place his soup in front of him.

"I'm going to be your spouse, if I can help you then it's my duty to do so." He hesitated before explaining further. "And you reminded me that I should feed Tseng; I've never brought him to a formal meal before." And wouldn't now if it wasn't required that he display all his inner household at this banquet. He could force guests to accept Sephiroth's presence sitting at the table for _small_ formal meals, like the one he'd invited the Triumvirate to after agreeing to consider a courtship with Rowan, but not Tseng's, and he only ate with Tseng when his concubine could sit at the table with him.

"I'm glad to have helped in any small way. Thank you." She glanced at their server with an appreciative smile as she thanked her. "Did you choose our server for my sake?"

"A bit, yes." And he'd 'suggested' that they should all wear tunics rather than trousers or longer skirts because he'd noticed that Rowan liked legs and they might as well dress to please someone who'd appreciate it.

"Forgive me if this is insolent, but...I wondered about the type of bow you prefer to use?" Sephiroth hadn't had that much chance to speak to Rowan before, and Cloud was grateful to him for changing the subject of the conversation, especially when Zack joined in.

"Do you use a recurve, or a flat self-bow, and how heavy a bow do you tend to use?" They managed to talk about bows, with Aeris bringing up how to _treat_ arrow wounds, and what sort of arrows were best for different types of prey, then the conversation shifted to swords, and the staffs Aeris used. Somehow by the end of the meal they were talking about chocobos, and what conformations were best for various activities, and how warbirds had to be trained so differently to other types. It made a good segue into the subject of Cloud's espousal gift for Rowan, and he stood up, drawing all eyes to him as Tseng picked up the parcel he'd brought with him.

"Speaking of chocobos, it's not right that the best bird my spouse has in her stable is a black." Tseng stood and walked around the table to offer the parcel to Rowan while Cloud spoke, his footsteps audible to Cloud even over the sound of his own voice. "I selected your gold myself, and you only need to present the claim chit to my stable master and he'll release her to you."

"Thank you." She accepted the box and opened it while Tseng returned to his place at Cloud's feet and Cloud sat down himself, watching for how she reacted to the red leather harness with copper fittings and bells. Tseng had been the one to suggest they have it dyed to match her hair, but it had been Sephiroth who'd taken the time to work with the dyers to match the colour to Rowan's hair, from memory.

"That's a dress harness, the more practical stuff is kept in the tack room, and so's the dress saddle." He felt as if he had to explain in the face of her almost blank expression.

"You...had the dress harness and saddle made especially for this, didn't you Cloud?" There was a note in her voice that sounded oddly like awe and he wasn't quite sure why.

"Well, most of our birds don't actually have dress tack, just our personal mounts, mine, Aeris', Sephiroth's, Zack's and now yours." Even Tseng's personal chocobo didn't have dress tack.

"I'm honoured." She sounded as if she meant it, and then she stood, pulling one of her concubines to her feet as well. "This is Elena, she's my gift to you. I thought perhaps you might like some experience with females."

Cloud couldn't say anything for a moment from the shock, then he turned to Sephiroth and saw that shock mirrored on his face.

"Sephiroth, did Rowan speak to you about this?" The question was almost rhetorical, but Sephiroth answered it anyway, clearly understanding that Cloud needed to do this formally, and make it obvious to everyone watching what Rowan had done to offend him, them.

"No Cloud, she didn't." Sephiroth's voice was perfectly calm, but Cloud could see the anger in his eyes. "Didn't you say something about your contract forbidding _any_ interference in each other's households?"

"Yes, it does." Cloud stood, looking straight at Rowan. "That means there are _two_ reasons to break our contract."

"I...I hadn't thought of it that way." There was shock written on Rowan's face too. "I just thought...you're the faithful type or you'd have suggested we see if we were sexually compatible before we signed the contracts...it was a bit selfish of me, but...you know women react differently to some things than men do." A frown crossed her face then, as if she had only just processed exactly what Cloud had said. "Two reasons? I...understand you don't want me when I clearly couldn't think the ramifications and implications of my gift or realise that it constitutes interference in your household, but...what is the other reason?"

"Giving a concubine without clearing it with the consort beforehand is serious enough that people have declared feud over it." Cloud did his best to break it to her gently, but if he chose to declare feud against her he would be within his rights to demand an immediate duel and claim whatever prize he wished, or to demand whatever compensation he desired now.

"I...I didn't realise." She paled at that, not by much, but it _was_ noticeable, as was the way she swallowed before looking at Sephiroth. "If I had known I would have asked you to make your selection from my harem. I chose Elena because she seemed to have most in common with your Tseng. I thought she'd please you both." Rowan was a _lot_ smarter than most of the high nobility Cloud dealt with; she knew that Sephiroth would be the one who decided what Cloud was going to do with her.

"No feud. Be generous." Sephiroth's voice was barely audible, even to Cloud, but from the hint of relief on Rowan's face she could hear it as well.

"I won't declare feud. I didn't when Aeris did the same thing after all. But...I can't take you as my spouse now. And I refuse to try another of the high nobility; I've tried seeking a spouse for duty, but now I intend to follow my heart." Cloud made sure he projected his voice well enough that everyone could hear him, and from the excited murmurs he could hear his words had implied what he wanted them to. "I will announce my choice of spouse within a week, once I have obtained her consent." He'd planned this announcement to imply that he already loved one of his guards but had held back from her for duty's sake with Aeris two months ago, as a contingency because that was when his courtship with Rowan gained sufficient status that ending it would work as an excuse to take a commoner as his spouse.

"The gifts." Another bare breath of sound from Sephiroth reminded Cloud of the other thing he needed to cover before they left.

"You are free to keep the chocobo I chose for you; you are certainly worthy of her as a warrior."

"Thank you." Rowan glanced from Cloud to Sephiroth and then back. "I want to offer the same about Elena, but I don't want to risk offending any further."

"Give us a day to consider it." Sephiroth stood and took Elena's hand from Rowan's, and _this_ was something he could legitimately make decisions on at least. "For now...where should we put her Cloud?"

"Take her to the red guest room, if it's available, then join us in my quarters." With that Cloud helped Tseng to his feet and left.


	5. Chapter 5

Tseng glanced up briefly as Sephiroth came into the first room of their quarters, then returned to massaging the stress from Cloud's shoulders.

"Enough." Tseng climbed off Cloud's back at once, moving to join Sephiroth at the table, just as Cloud did. "So, we need to decide which of my guards I should ask to be my spouse."

"We?" Tseng could understand why Cloud would want Sephiroth's input, but what difference did _Tseng's_ opinion make?

"I want to make sure everyone can live with my choice of spouse." Cloud's voice was almost stern, but there was enough gentleness to it that Tseng didn't care about that. "Now, there's five females in my guard; Coran, Morvoren, Brangwen, Orianne, and Kanan; can either of you think of any reason to remove any of them from consideration?"

"Morvoren is involved with Angeal and I think it's fairly serious." Sephiroth would know, considering how Cloud's guards almost doted on him, but Cloud didn't look as if he saw how that made a difference.

"And there's no way your spouse would have a lover in the scenario you want to present my lord." It was incredibly rare for a commoner spouse to have outside lovers anyway, at least according to some of the gossip Tseng had heard and from the one case where his owner had taken a commoner as a spouse. Probably because among themselves commoners usually espoused as much for love as for the pragmatic motivations behind most espousals in the nobility and when a noble took a commoner as a spouse love was usually a large part of the reason.

"That makes sense. I'm certainly not going to demand she give him up for me. And that rules Kanan out as well; she's in a cross-caste relationship, and she talked to me about making sure Reese was taken care of if anything happened to her, even if they can't espouse officially."

"So he'd have time to grieve you mean?" Tseng couldn't think of any other reason Reese would need to be taken care of if anything happened to Kanan.

"And so he wouldn't be the one performing surgery on Kanan if it could be avoided." Sephiroth had a look of understanding on his face and Tseng was convinced his own face was as blank as his mind felt at the moment.

"Yes, that sort of thing." Sephiroth's understanding seemed to please Cloud, and Tseng wanted to come up with something that would please their master as well.

"I think Orianne's a bit too old to qualify as your spouse. I mean...she's at least five years older than Sephiroth, so..."

"She won't be fertile for long enough, I know. Are there any problems with Coran or Brangwen then?"

"Not that I can think of." Tseng blinked as he realised he'd spoken simultaneously with Sephiroth and fell silent, letting the other man finish speaking alone. "As long as neither of them have entanglements we aren't aware of that is."

"Good." Cloud stood and rang for a servant then bent to pull on his tunic. "Sephiroth, what did you think of that concubine?"

"I...she's brave. Elena spoke to me first as I took her to the red room. She asked me if you would permit her to cut her hair short if you decided to keep her." Sephiroth finished with a laugh, and Tseng blinked to hide his surprise, although...

"Short hair might suit her better than having it so long." Sephiroth frowned at that, looking faintly confused.

"It didn't sound as if she cared about how well it suited her...she asked how I could cope with long pale hair."

"Practical then as well." Cloud sounded almost approving, and Tseng could see why; Cloud liked people who were practical. "Come in." This in response to a knock on the door. "Go and fetch Coran and Brangwen for me Maria."

"Yes sir." She bowed quickly before turning to leave.

"Right, we need to decide what we're going to do with Elena. Sephiroth, do you think I should keep her, or not?"

"I...from her attitude I...I don't _think_ she'd be trying to take up too much of your attention, so...I don't care, as long as you don't take her very often or expect her to sleep in the same bed as me." Tseng was surprised to hear Sephiroth's conclusion, after how badly he'd reacted when Aeris gave Tseng to Cloud, but he admired the courage it took for Sephiroth to tell Cloud that, despite the pain in his voice. "I...I know I don't have the right to choose who you have sex with, but...I don't want her to take your attention away from me." Tseng hesitated, then decided that he had to speak in favour of keeping Elena.

"There are two fairly good reasons for keeping Elena, or at least one good reason and one reason that's just about me. First, the one that's just about me is that I get a little lonely sometimes, and Elena would be companionship for me, especially when you two send me to sleep alone." Tseng felt almost ashamed to be bringing something so selfish up after Sephiroth had been so careful about his response to Cloud, but he had to be honest, and it hurt sometimes when Cloud told him to go away so he could be with Sephiroth.

"Have we been cruel to you?" Sephiroth sounded puzzled and frowned a little as he looked at Tseng, but at least there was no pain in his voice. "Have we neglected you that much?"

"No, no you haven't hurt me, or neglected me, not since you moved me into the harem area. But you're allowed to travel with Cloud, and I am not under most circumstances. And I know that sometimes you'd rather I didn't sleep with you and Cloud, but you feel some sort of obligation to let me."

"What's the _other_ reason you think I should keep Elena?" Cloud sounded just a little impatient, not that Tseng could blame him.

"For your spouse. You can't legitimately lend me to her, and I know you wouldn't even think about doing that to Sephiroth. But with the cover story you've just fed the Triumvirate and the Councils there's no way she can take lovers for...I don't know, probably years. And you won't want your spouse to take more attention from Sephiroth than she absolutely has to. So you need someone you can share with her. And considering your reputation and how you responded to Rowan trying to give Elena to you it would be incredibly stupid for you to buy another concubine yourself, or send your spouse to do that for you. That leaves Elena."

"You're right." Cloud reached over and stroked Tseng's hair, letting him know that Cloud was pleased with him. "I'll tell them that my spouse can have Elena whenever she wants, until we can afford for her to take outside lovers. Assuming of course that Brangwen or Coran like women that way."

"I think they're both interested in men and women, so that wouldn't be a problem." Tseng hadn't known that, and he wouldn't have expected _Sephiroth_ to know either considering how much warrior caste Cetra tended to protect consorts. But with Cetra the default assumption was a taste for men and women, usually tending more to a taste for men the way Cloud did, or more to a taste for women the way Rowan seemed to.

"Good. Come in." Cloud turned towards the door, and Tseng followed his example, watching as Brangwen and Coran walked in. "Brangwen, Coran, please sit down."

"Sir, if this has anything to do with that announcement you made today I'm not interested. With all due respect you aren't my type."

"I understand Coran. And I'm sorry you feel that way." Cloud sounded perfectly calm as he answered her, and it wasn't surprising Coran knew why they'd been summoned, since she'd been on duty in the hall where they'd eaten. "Would the knowledge that I intend to keep Elena and make her available to my spouse sway you at all?"

"Not at all. Now _Tseng_ might work as an incentive for me, but you'd never share him. Might I go now sir?"

"Yes, of course. Brangwen, would you be willing to become my spouse? As I told Coran the position comes with almost total access to Elena, and I'm willing to allow you to decide when we have sex, since you're most likely to know when you're fertile. I...you won't be able to take any lovers for a while, and Sephiroth will always be the most important person in my heart but..."

"Will I have to give up being your guard?" Tseng was surprised to hear _that_ as her first question, but Cloud didn't seem to be.

"No, but you'll be restricted to 'safe' duties until you've given me at least one child."

"And during any pregnancy of course." She didn't sound entirely happy about that, but then she laughed. "I suppose it gives me motivation to give you an heir as quickly as possible then."

"And, one of the more obscure traditions among the high nobility is to celebrate the birth of the first child by buying a concubine to 'share' with a commoner spouse." Those concubines had almost as much security as a first concubine; two of Tseng's previous masters had owned that type of concubine, and they'd been very proud of their status.

"Then yes, I'll be your spouse. When do you wish to announce this...Cloud?"

"I promised within the week, so...three days from tomorrow perhaps?"

"As you wish. I will leave you in peace for now then." She didn't wait for permission to leave, just stood and walked out and Cloud turned his attention to Tseng.

"What was that about getting a new concubine when she gives birth?"

"It is tradition. If she decides Elena is enough to satisfy her you might not have to, and if she does want another concubine then it gives her someone to distract her from you, who won't be letting anyone know that it isn't a love match. And you still won't have enough concubines for it to be at all acceptable to give you a new one as a gift, especially after your reaction to Elena."

"Tseng, just go to bed, your own bed." Cloud sounded tired, but that was better than him sounding angry.

"Yes Cloud."


End file.
